Poet laureate

A depiction of Torquato Tasso from a German encyclopedia, 1905. Note the laurel crown.

A poet laureate (plural: poets laureate)[1][2][3] is a poet officially appointed by a government or conferring institution, typically expected to compose poems for special events and occasions. Albertino Mussato of Padua and Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch) of Arezzo were the first to be crowned poets laureate after the classical age, respectively in 1315 and 1342.[4] In Britain, the term dates from the appointment of Bernard André by Henry VII of England. The royal office of Poet Laureate in England dates from the appointment of John Dryden in 1668.

In modern times a poet laureate title may be conferred by an organization such as the Poetry Foundation, which designates a Young People's Poet Laureate, unconnected with the National Youth Poet Laureate and the United States Poet Laureate.[5]

The office is also popular with regional and community groups. Examples include the Pikes Peak Poet Laureate,[6] which is designated by a "Presenting Partners" group from within the community, the Minnesota poet laureate chosen by the League of Minnesota Poets (est. 1934),[7] the Northampton Poet Laureate[8] chosen by the Northampton Arts Council,[9] and the Martha's Vineyard Poet Laureate chosen by ten judges representing the Martha's Vineyard Poetry Society.

  1. ^ "POET LAUREATE definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary".
  2. ^ "Poet laureate Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster".
  3. ^ Publishers, HarperCollins. "The American Heritage Dictionary entry: poet laureate". www.ahdictionary.com.
  4. ^ Robert Weiss, The Renaissance Discovery of Classical Antiquity (Oxford, 1973);Ernest Hatch Wilkins, The Making of the Canzoniere and Other Petrarchan Studies 1951:9-69, noted in Weiss 1973:32.
  5. ^ "Young People's Poet Laureate". Poetry Foundation. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
  6. ^ "Current Poet Laureate". Pikes Peak Poet Laureate. Archived from the original on March 1, 2013.
  7. ^ "Poet Laureate « the League of Minnesota Poets". Archived from the original on June 26, 2012. Retrieved August 15, 2012.
  8. ^ "Poet Laureate". Northampton Arts Council. Retrieved April 1, 2024.
  9. ^ "Our Purpose". Northampton Arts Council. Retrieved April 1, 2024.